Reversible Airways Disease - Maintenance News

FRIDAY, Dec. 2, 2016 – Research investigating schoolchildren's asthma attacks has pointed to a tiny foe: mice. Allergens from the rodents can infiltrate the air, the study found, and may be a major cause of asthma attacks in the school environment. It's known that many different allergy triggers – from dust mites to mold to pet dander – can fuel children's asthma symptoms. But most research has focused on the triggers in kids' homes. "In this study, we've identified the school as an important factor, too," said researcher Dr. Wanda Phipatanakul, an allergy specialist at Boston Children's Hospital. That said, she stressed, the findings do not actually prove that schools' rodent problems were the cause of kids' symptoms. The next step, Phipatanakul said, is a study where schools will get air purifiers and "integrated pest management," to see if that improves students' respiratory ... Read more

TUESDAY, Sept. 27, 2016 – Growing up on a farm may help ward off allergies later in life, a new study suggests. The study also found that women who spend their early years on a farm typically have stronger lungs than their suburban or city-dwelling peers. Other research has suggested that exposure to germs and potential allergens in early childhood could protect people against allergies later. A team led by the University of Melbourne's Shyamali Dharmage put this "hygiene hypothesis" to the test. Dharmage is a professor in the Center for Epidemiology & Biostatistics. The team analyzed data from a survey of more than 10,000 adults in 14 countries in Europe, Scandinavia and Australia. Nearly 64 percent said they spent their first five years of life in a rural village, small town or city suburb. About 27 percent lived in the city and about 9 percent grew up on a farm. Kids who spent their ... Read more

FRIDAY, Aug. 26, 2016 – A common genetic variation significantly boosts the odds of asthma in children who've had a severe respiratory illness at a young age, researchers report. "Our findings suggest that genetic influences on asthma might be more pronounced in the context of early life environmental exposures, especially viral respiratory infections," said Dr. Rajesh Kumar, an allergist at Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago. He is senior author of the new report. The study involved nearly 3,500 Hispanic children, aged 8 to 21, and a smaller number of black children. It focused on a variation of the Plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 (PAI-1) gene. PAI-1 is an enzyme that increases in the airways in response to viral illness, sometimes causing damage, the researchers explained. Asthma risk was 17 times higher among children with this variation who had a common illness called ... Read more

WEDNESDAY, Aug. 3, 2016 – It can't be easy living a 19th-century life in the midst of 21st-century technology, but new research suggests the Amish people have at least one distinct advantage over the rest of the population – much lower rates of asthma. "We found Amish children had extremely low levels of asthma and allergic sensitization. Their kids were pretty much protected from asthma and allergies," said study senior author Anne Sperling, an associate professor of medicine at the University of Chicago. That was particularly true when they were compared to the children of another dairy farming population, the Hutterites. Hutterites are similar to the Amish in many ways, except that the Hutterites use mechanical farming equipment. The Amish asthma rate is 5 percent; for Hutterite children, it's 21 percent, the study authors said. Overall, the childhood asthma rate in the United ... Read more

THURSDAY, July 21, 2016 – Children and teens who feel confident handling a chronic illness on their own appear better able to learn to manage their health as adults, a new study finds. The University of North Carolina investigators concluded that kids who believe their health is controlled by adults or by chance may not develop the health self-management skills they will need as adults. This could put them at increased risk for health problems. The study included 163 youngsters, aged 6 to 17, attending a camp for young people with chronic diseases. Researchers asked the participants whether they felt they had control over their health. The researchers also assessed whether the children took medications as prescribed and their readiness to transition to adult care. Feeling confident about managing their own health and being ready to transition to adult care likely indicate that ... Read more

MONDAY, July 18, 2016 – Living near fracking sites may make asthma worse for many of those who suffer from the respiratory condition, a new study suggests. Fracking is a controversial process in which water, sand and chemicals are pumped deep into the ground at high pressure to extract hard-to-reach pockets of natural gas. "The unconventional natural gas development process [fracking] has numerous environmental impacts that could affect health," said lead researcher Dr. Brian Schwartz. He is a professor of environmental health sciences, epidemiology and medicine at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in Baltimore. The list of impacts includes noise, vibration, strong odors, air pollution, water pollution, soil pollution, heavy truck traffic, conversion of rural areas to industrial ones and stress, he said. Many of these can also affect asthma symptoms, Schwartz added. For ... Read more

FRIDAY, July 8, 2016 – London's Great Smog of 1952 might have affected the health of young children and unborn babies, resulting in thousands of additional cases of asthma, a new study contends. "Our results suggest that the harm from this dreadful event over 60 years ago lives on today," said the study's leader, Matthew Neidell, in a Columbia University news release. He is an associate professor of Health Policy and Management at Columbia's Mailman School of Public Health in New York City. The Great Smog of London lasted five days in December 1952. The smog developed when a weather phenomenon that pushes air downwards helped trap the pollution from residential coal fires (to heat homes) and industrial pollution low to the ground, according to the United Kingdom's public weather service. People described the smog as so thick you couldn't see from one side of the street to the other, ... Read more

-- A lung function test measures how well your lungs are working, helping your doctor diagnose the cause and severity of any problems with your breathing. The U.S. National Heart Lung and Blood Institute says the test is designed to show: The amount of air that you can breathe into your lungs to see if it's in the normal range. The amount of air that you can exhale from your lungs, and how quickly you can do it. The ability of your lungs to bring oxygen to your blood. How strong the muscles that help you breathe are. Read more

-- Asthma medications can tame your symptoms and greatly improve your quality of life. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says benefits of controlling asthma include: Better breathing. Regaining the ability to participate in sports and other physical activities. Better sleep. Freedom from wheezing and coughing. Avoiding hospital stays. Read more

TUESDAY, May 31, 2016 – Only half of parents of children with asthma fully understand the use of their youngsters' asthma medications, a new study finds. A survey of parents of 740 children with probable persistent asthma found just 49 percent knew what kind of medication their child was prescribed and how often to use it. Following recommended guidelines is key to controlling asthma symptoms, experts say. "Adherence to the guidelines has demonstrated improved outcomes: decreased hospitalizations, emergency department visits and outpatient visits," said study primary author Dr. Ann Chen Wu, of the Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute in Boston. Parents were asked which asthma controller medications their child was prescribed and how often they should be taken. Responses were compared to instructions from their child's health care provider. Records showed that 77 percent of the ... Read more

FRIDAY, May 27, 2016 – Asthma symptoms increase in spring, making it especially important for people with the lung disease to be aware of triggers and risk factors, an expert says. "Asthma is a lifelong disease that causes wheezing, breathlessness, chest tightness and coughing," said Dr. Linda Rogers, director of the clinical asthma program at Mount Sinai-National Jewish Health Respiratory Institute, in New York City. "While there is no cure for asthma, a personalized care plan including appropriate medications and education on triggers and proper care techniques can prevent attacks from occurring, helping patients lead a full and active life," she said in a Mount Sinai news release. An asthma attack can cause airways to swell, which constricts airflow and results in difficulty breathing. Common asthma triggers include tobacco smoke, outdoor air pollution, dust mites, pet dander, ... Read more

FRIDAY, May 27, 2016 – Inhaled steroid therapy is commonly used to treat asthmatic children with persistent, daily wheezing episodes. However, a new study suggests that the powerful medicines may not be needed on a daily basis for kids whose wheezing occurs sporadically, such as when they catch a cold. "It makes sense that these children with frequent symptoms require daily treatment, whereas those who wheeze just during viral illnesses may only need treatment during illnesses," study lead author Dr. Sunitha Kaiser, of the University of California, San Francisco, said in a university news release. Two experts who reviewed the study had different reactions to the findings, however. "The less-frequent use of steroids is good news for children, since chronic steroid use can stunt growth," said Dr. Len Horovitz, a pulmonary specialist at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City. Child asthma ... Read more

-- An asthma action plan can help people with asthma handle an attack quickly and safely. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends: Creating the action plan with your doctor's assistance. Including in your plan the asthma treatments taken daily, including the type of medications and when taken. Including a plan for long-term asthma control. Including a plan for an asthma attack. Noting when it's appropriate to visit the doctor or go to the emergency room. If the plan is for a child, giving the plan to anyone who cares for that child, including daycare providers and teachers. Read more

THURSDAY, May 12, 2016 – Though many children with persistent asthma get better as they get older, some may go on to develop chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in early adulthood, a new study suggests. People with the poorest lung function and reduced lung growth are most at risk for developing COPD, a chronic progressive condition that makes it hard to breathe, the researchers said. "Study participants were children with mild-to-moderate persistent asthma, which places them among the most severe 30 or 40 percent of all childhood asthmatics. Among this group, serious airway obstruction is an early life possibility," said researcher Michael McGeachie. "There may be interventions that can help mitigate these risks, although we do not specifically identify any," said McGeachie, an instructor in medicine at Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston. The ... Read more

WEDNESDAY, May 11, 2016 – While most people know that wheezing is a sign of asthma, far fewer realize that trouble sleeping or a persistent cough may also be symptoms of the airway disease, a new survey shows. Those findings may help explain why many adults don't realize they have the disease and don't seek treatment, the researchers said. But, one in every 200 U.S. adults is diagnosed every year with asthma, a condition called adult-onset asthma, the researchers said. "A lot of people have asthma and don't know it. Many adults do not have the traditional asthma symptoms, or they don't have all of the symptoms," said Dr. David Beuther. He is a pulmonologist at National Jewish Health in Denver, a hospital that specializes in respiratory diseases. The hospital commissioned the national survey. It included more than 1,000 people who were aged 18 and older. They were asked about the ... Read more